Not too Shabby Hutch

Last week I featured my dear friend Pam and her labor of love, Born in the Barn. This week, I want to show you one of my favorite pieces purchased from her last sale. How many of you have, or had, a curio cabinet? Let me guess, it is lighted and it houses years and years of collectible treasures and maybe some glitzy crystal. Am I right? Almost twenty years ago, my husband and I (well I) picked out a lighted curio cabinet from K’s Merchandise. I was in love with it! And with it’s laminate wood frame and brass trim, who wouldn’t be, right? Makes me giggle out loud right now.

It didn’t take long for me to fill it with my Precious Moment figurines, Glenn’s collectible pewter, crystal bowls, candle sticks, and of course, our champagne flutes from our wedding. Oh, how the crystal reflected off the glass shelves. Let me tell you, I turned the lights on in that cabinet each and every night!! Speaking of glass shelves…. never again. Talk about DUST, and if you have young children and they are running and jumping in the house; the breakables twitch, threatening to topple over. If they move even slightly, you can see the clean spot where that treasure was sitting! I”ll have you know I cleaned that glass and dusted the inside of the cabinet twice a year. Removing what seemed like hundreds of figurines and then trying to place them all back in there the way I had them, well, needless to say was a PAIN!

Fast forward to 2 years ago. I made an executive decision that I was going to box up all of my Precious Moments and Glenn’s pewter figurines. Gasp!! I know, how dare I?! I removed the crystal too, and stored it in a closet. I didn’t take this decision lightly; after all, everything in that cabinet had been given to us as gifts! I didn’t want to hurt my family’s feelings when removing these items. Wasted energy! They didn’t and don’t mind. Mostly they just admire the new items!

I decided I was going to decorate the curio cabinet for Christmas. I had so much fun filling it with red, green and pink Christmas cheer. Again, the lights made it come alive. Sorry for the poor quality of the next 2 pictures, they were taken with a phone camera for the purpose of remembering how it was decorated, with no idea I would want to post these someday on a blog!

After Christmas was over, instead of returning all the figurines to their respectable space, I snuck in some turquoise statement pieces. Turquoise, by the way, is the pop of color in our home amongst a gray and neutral pallet. I did not regret that choice in the least. Time for truth… I was SICK of that cabinet. By no means do I want to come across rude to the people that still adore their curio cabinet. I loved and decorated that piece of furniture for almost 20 years, I just decided it was time to move on.

By this time, the annual Born in the Barn sale was fast approaching. I am not ashamed to say that I have several pieces of furniture and treasures from Born in the Barn and I consider them all authentic members of this house that will be handed down to my girls someday. As I mentioned last week, I scan my home and measure available space as the sale gets near. This past spring, I measured how tall and wide that curio cabinet was, hoping she may have a piece that would fit.

Isn’t it magnificent?! I love all the detail! The turquoise sits right at home in contrast to the soft gray pallet. I love gray too! The hutch is actually slightly bigger than my original cabinet, and I love it even more!! For all you do it yourself-ers, Pam told me the color is a combination of coco with a white wash on top. I had my husband wire lights in it, too. 😀 I’m a sucker for ambiance in the evening.

What did I do with my old cabinet? Garage SALE! Turns out our neighbor was in search of this very thing to house her collectibles–ahh!!! LOVE IT! I’ll change the old saying slightly – “one woman’s junk, another woman’s treasure.”

For fun, I decided to decorate my new hutch for Fall!! I follow a lot of decorating blogs and several of them have posted charming hutches decked out in Fall attire. So, here are several different attempts. My living room was in shambles and it took me all day, but I loved every minute!

Of course I decked it out in neutrals and I love this beyond words. Trouble is, I would need to purchase many more white pumpkins in order to replenish their original spaces around the house. I added a tray on the top shelf for a bit of contrast and because I highlighted the use of trays last week. So, here’s a way to simply display one and make a pretty backdrop.

This was fun! Talk about color, the orange pops!! I tried bringing my authentic pumpkins from outside, and they are WAY too big! Couldn’t shut the doors if I tried and I felt they were too heavy for these shelves, so I went hunting around the house for smaller goodies to fill it.

I decided maybe the candy jar should stay in the kitchen, I don’t need my family running to the hutch each time they have a hankering for a pumpkin. I just took some fresh snipped juniper and wrapped the inside of this hurricane and added a candle. This is how I ended up leaving the hutch decorated :).

I would love to know which is your favorite. If you decorate your hutch for each holiday, I would love to hear about it! Christmas is right around the corner! EEK!

If you have a curio cabinet, you don’t HAVE to keep the same collectibles you have looked at for years upon years. Change it up! Your relatives will not mind that the Cherished Teddy they bought in you ’01 is now tucked away. In fact, you may inspire them to gently wrap up their breakables and try something fresh. You can always bring them forward and showcase them anytime you want, right? Second, if you dare, find a new piece and either sell yours or pass it down. I promise, it’s ok!! I would love to hear your thoughts and see your beloved hutches and cabinets decked out. One thing I have learned.. It doesn’t matter how it was “done” in the past, it’s what makes you happiest today! Switch it up!

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I’m Martha, welcome to my blog! I am a wife and a mother to 3 beautiful daughters. Making our home pretty is one of my favorite hobbies and I get so inspired by changes and events that happen in every day life. Simple and cozy is a must around our house; I want family and friends to feel right at home. My roots are farm grown, so I love adding sweet charm from my parents’ homestead, sharing hearty recipes, and simple diy tutorials. So please, stay awhile, browse a bit, and let me know what inspires you!